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Call key data
Video game and immersive content development
Funding Program
Creative Europe - Media Strand
Call number
CREA-MEDIA-2025-DEVVGIM
deadlines
Opening
01.10.2024
Deadline
12.02.2025 17:00
Funding rate
60%
Call budget
€ 7,000,000.00
Estimated EU contribution per project
max. € 200,000.00
Link to the call
Link to the submission
Call content
short description
The objective of the support to Video games and immersive content development is to increase the capacity of European video game producers, XR studios and audiovisual production companies to develop video games and interactive immersive experiences with the potential to reach global audiences. The support also aims to improve the competitiveness of the European video games industry and other companies producing interactive immersive content in European and international markets by enabling the retention of intellectual property by European developers.
Call objectives
Support will be given to the development (pre-production) of concepts and prototypes of interactive narrative storytelling with original content and/or quality gameplay intended for production and global commercial exploitation via PCs, consoles, mobile devices, tablets, smart phones and other technologies.
The aim is to provide funds to video game production companies and other companies producing immersive content to develop works with a high level of originality and innovative and creative value, and that have a high level of commercial ambition and extensive cross-border potential to reach European and international markets. This will allow for further investment in innovative European content and increase the competitiveness of European companies in the digital global market.
Applications should present adequate strategies to ensure a more sustainable and more environmentally-respectful industry and to ensure gender balance, inclusion, diversity and representativeness.
The production phase is ineligible. Production is understood as the phase starting from the testing and debugging of the first prototype3 until the end of the production of the Gold Master or equivalent.
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Expected effects and impacts
- Increased quality, appeal, feasibility and cross-border potential for selected projects.
- A stronger position on the European and international market for video games developers and companies producing interactive immersive experiences
Eligibility Criteria
Regions / countries for funding
Albania (Shqipëria), Bosnia and Herzegovina (Bosna i Hercegovina / Босна и Херцеговина), Georgia (საქართველო), Iceland (Ísland), Liechtenstein, Montenegro (Црна Гора), North Macedonia (Северна Македонија), Norway (Norge), Serbia (Srbija/Сpбија), Ukraine (Україна)
eligible entities
Education and training institution, International organization, Non-Profit Organisation (NPO) / Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), Other, Private institution, incl. private company (private for profit), Public Body (national, regional and local; incl. EGTCs), Research Institution incl. University, Small and medium-sized enterprise (SME)
Mandatory partnership
No
Project Partnership
Applications by single applicants are allowed (single beneficiaries; affiliated entities and other participants are allowed, if needed) as well as proposals submitted by a consortium of at least 2 applicants (beneficiaries; not affiliated entities).
In order to be eligible, the applicants (beneficiaries and affiliated entities) must:
- be legal entities (public or private bodies)
- be established in one of the eligible countries i.e.:
- Creative Europe Participating Countries:
- EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories)
- non-EU countries (listed EEA countries and countries associated to the Creative EuropeProgramme or countries which are in ongoing negotiations for an association agreement and where the agreement enters into force before grant signature - list of participating countries)
- Creative Europe Participating Countries:
- be established in one of the countries participating fully in the MEDIA Strand of the Creative Europe Programme and owned directly or indirectly, wholly or by majority participation, by nationals from such countries. When a company is publicly listed, the location of the stock exchange will in principle determine its nationality
- be European video game production companies, XR studios or audiovisual production companies
- the coordinator must demonstrate recent experience in producing internationally distributed works
Natural persons are NOT eligible (with the exception of self-employed persons, i.e. sole traders, where the company does not have legal personality separate from that of the natural person.
International organisations — International organisations are eligible. The rules on eligible countries do not apply to them.
Entities without legal personality — Entities which do not have legal personality under their national law may exceptionally participate, provided that their representatives have the capacity to undertake legal obligations on their behalf, and offer guarantees for the protection of the EU financial interests equivalent to that offered by legal persons.
EU bodies — EU bodies (with the exception of the European Commission Joint Research Centre) can NOT be part of the consortium.
Associations and interest groupings — Entities composed of members may participate as ‘sole beneficiaries’ or ‘beneficiaries without legal personality’. Please note that if the action will be implemented by the members, they should also participate (either as beneficiaries or as affiliated entities, otherwise their costs will NOT be eligible).
A European video game production company, XR studio or audiovisual production company is a company whose main objective and activity is video game production/development, (entertainment) software development or audiovisual production (or equivalent). Publishing companies are not eligible applicants.
Coordinator with recent experience in producing internationally distributed works —The coordinator must prove that it has produced or developed a video game or (interactive or non-interactive) immersive experience that has been commercially distributed in the period between 01/01/2022 and the deadline for submission of applications. Work-for-hire, i.e. projects for which the development or production work was subcontracted to the coordinator by another company, is not eligible, nor are projects on which a member of the coordinating company has a personal credit. Early Access works are not eligible either because they are not completed works yet and are still being developed. To prove the commercial distribution of the previous work, the coordinator must be able to provide a relevant sales report showing sales in the period between 01/01/2022 and the date of the deadline for submission.
other eligibility criteria
Only activities related to the concept development (pre-production) phase of narrative video games and interactive narrative immersive experiences, regardless of platform or expected distribution method, are eligible. The concept development (pre- production) phase is understood as the phase starting from the first idea until the delivery of the first prototype.
In order to be considered narrative, the story must be told or shown throughout the whole game (in-game storytelling) or interactive immersive experience, and not only as an introduction or an ending.
In all cases, the work must be intended for commercial exploitation.
The coordinator or, in case the application is submitted by a consortium, (one of) the eligible partner(s) must own the majority of the rights related to the project. No later than on the day of the deadline for submission of applications, the coordinator or, in case the application is submitted by a consortium, (one of) the eligible partner(s) must have a duly dated and signed contract covering the rights to the artistic material included in the application. If the project is an adaptation of an existing work (literary, audiovisual, comic book, etc.), the coordinator or, in case the application is submitted by a consortium, (one of) the eligible partner(s) must also hold the majority of the rights relating to the rights of adaptation to this work with an option agreement or transfer of rights contract duly dated and signed.
The start of the production phase of the submitted project has to be scheduled at least 10 months after the day of the deadline for submission of applications. The production phase starts once the first prototype is available.
If the work has an interoperable standard identifier, such as ISAN or EIDR, it must be indicated in the application. In any case, for all projects selected for funding such an identifier must be created before the end of the action period.
Financial support to third parties is not allowed.
The grant will be a lump sum grant.
Additional information
Topics
Relevance for EU Macro-Region
EUSAIR - EU Strategy for the Adriatic and Ionian Region, EUSALP - EU Strategy for the Alpine Space, EUSBSR - EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, EUSDR - EU Strategy for the Danube Region
UN Sustainable Development Goals (UN-SDGs)
project duration
36 months
Additional Information
All proposals must be submitted electronically via the Funders & Tenders Portal electronic submission system (accessible via the topic page in the Search Funding & Tenders section). Paper submissions are NOT possible.
Proposals must be complete and contain all parts and mandatory annexes and supporting documents:
- Part A (to be filled in directly online) contains administrative information about the participants (future coordinator and beneficiaries and affiliated entities), the summarised budget for the proposal
- Part B (to be downloaded from the Portal submission system, completed and then assembled and re-uploaded as a PDF in the system) contains the technical description of the project.
- Part C (to be filled in directly online) containing additional project data and the project’s contribution to EU programme key performance indicators
- mandatory annexes and supporting documents (templates available to be downloaded from the Portal Submission System, completed, assembled and re-uploaded):
- detailed budget table (mandatory template available in the Submission System)
- A PDF document with information about film(s)/work(s) to be generated from the Creative Europe MEDIA Database
- A creative dossier (description of gameplay, information on Graphical User Interface and Head-up Display, level and character design, pictures, graphic bible, script, storyboard, creative director's note, etc.)
- Rights contract / proof of ownership of rights (and in case of adaptation, rights of adaptation) for the project
- Supporting documents of co-production, distribution and financing
- Declaration on honour on independence and European ownership (mandatory template available in the Submission System)
- Declaration on language of the submitted materials (mandatory template available in the Submission System)
Proposals are limited to maximum 70 pages (Part B). Evaluators will not consider any additional pages.
Call documents
Contact
Website
Creative Europe Desk Austria - Media
+43 1 526 97 30-406
info@mediadeskaustria.eu
Website
Creative Europe Desks
Website
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